


See You, Space Pirate

by beingsydneycarton



Category: Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-15
Updated: 2018-02-13
Packaged: 2019-03-05 01:05:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13376856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beingsydneycarton/pseuds/beingsydneycarton
Summary: N7 Commander Kaidan Alenko is searching for an Alliance traitor when he meets information broker and all-around space pirate, Zehara Shepard. An unlikely, and unintended, romance develops.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm either going to continue this narrative throughout the entire ME series or end this fic after Kaidan's mission is complete, depending on whether you guys are interested in reading more or not! Please let me know if there are any errors and please, please let me know if you like the story! Enjoy :)

Commander Kaidan Alenko took a sip of his whiskey and scanned the bar. He had never been to Omega before, and after spending only two hours on the station, he wished he’d kept it that way. The station was built into a mined out asteroid, and was the center of much of the galaxy’s criminal activity. Murder, extortion, thievery, treason.... nothing was beyond its citizens. 

Luckily for him, Alenko wasn’t planning on staying long. He just had to find his target, pay her for the information he needed, and be on his way. Almost too easy for an N7 like him, but the information was important. 

Hearing the sound of shattered glass, Kaidan turned his attention to the source of the noise. Two humans were brawling in the corner of the bar. He waited for someone to step in, but not a single person in the bar paid the fight any mind. Purgatory sure was a fitting name for the place. He couldn't stop himself from scowling at the thought. 

“Well you’ve got a little black raincloud sitting over your head.” While his attention was on the bar fight, a woman had taken the seat next to him an ordered herself a drink, tequila by the looks of it. 

He turned to answer her. “I’ll try to keep the bar dry.” As soon as he made eye contact with the stranger he nearly choked on his drink. She was his target.

“You know it's not everyday we get an N7 here on Omega,” she smiled and it was clear she had noticed his shock, “especially not one who’s looking for me.” 

She had thrown him completely off balance. “How did you-?”

“Know that? I keep track of all Alliance and Council activity in this sector.” She laughed. “Can’t have them accidentally interfering with my business now can I? I pride myself on being well-informed.” She finished her tequila and gestured to him. “For instance, you are Commander Kaidan Alenko. You’re a biotic adept with an L2 implant, trained at Gagarin, colloquially known as Jump Zero. As a career man, you worked your way up the Alliance ranks and were made Commander after distinguishing yourself throughout a series of classified ops in the Traverse. Oh, and you just recently graduated from the N7 Program.” She paused to order another drink and then continued. “Congratulations, by the way.”

Shaken as he was by her thorough evaluation, Kaidan couldn’t let her know she had gotten under his skin. In fact, he was trained not to. Instead, he decided to play along. “And you are Zehara Shepard. Back-channels refer to you as Mercury because you’ve made an empire out of supplying anything to anyone, including information. You’re a smuggler.”

Her eyes were filled with amusement as she replied. “I prefer space pirate.”

He laughed at that. 

“So what,” she knocked back the rest of her drink and he took the opportunity to finish his, “brings you to our wretched hive of scum and villainy?”

“Information.”

“Ah.” Shepard sighed. “Why can’t it ever be fun with you Alliance-types?”

“Because fun leads to the dark side.” he said.

She laughed, a beautiful surprised laugh that made Kaidan smile. “Well! Unfortunately Purgatory is not the greatest place to conduct a business meeting.” She stood and Alenko followed her lead. “Aria T’Loak is having a masquerade later tonight. Accompany me, and we can talk business.”

“Where can I find you?” he asked, unsure about the idea.

Shepard began to walk toward the exit. “Don’t worry, I’ll find you.” She stopped for a second and turned toward him with a half-smile. “Oh, and Commander? I hope you brought a suit.”

******

Kaidan looked over his dossier one more time, the information blinking on his datapad. Zehara Shepard’s face smiled knowingly back at him from the file as he attempted to familiarize himself once more with her official record.

 

_ Name: Zehara Maria Shepard _

_ Age: 29 _

_ Known Aliases: Mercury, Z _

_ Zehara Shepard is the leader of a criminal empire of smugglers referred to as the Syndicate. She has been connected to the sale of arms and armor as well as the fencing of stolen goods. Of more interest is her position as Omega’s top information broker. Shepard is closely linked to the Shadow Broker and is a talented agent in her own right.  _

_ *IMPORTANT* _

_ Though rumored to be non-violent, Zehara Shepard is renowned for her marksmanship and both her combat and biotic abilities. She is extremely dangerous. If at all possible, DO NOT CONFRONT. _

 

Alenko chuckled at the concluding sentence. She hadn’t seemed nearly as dangerous in the bar as her dossier made her out to be. Although if Kaidan were a betting person, he would guess that her smile was more dangerous than any weapon she could possibly have on her person. 

He sighed and drank the rest of the coffee he had made upon arrival. After Anderson had given him his assignment last night, he had taken the first shuttle to Omega and hadn’t slept since he stepped foot on the station. It was going to be a long night.

“Well, Cinderella,” he was startled by a voice from behind him, “you can’t exactly go to the ball looking like that.”

Shepard had told him that she’d find him, and it appeared she had. “I’m not even going to bother asking how you got in.” He sighed, turning around.

The sight before him nearly knocked the wind out of him. Shepard was a vision in red. The low cut gown swept the floor and a slit ran all the way up to the top of her left thigh. The gold filigree mask she wore was the same color as the eyes gazing at him from behind it and her long black hair was contained in an elegant updo. Kaidan had to remind himself how to breathe. He was sure that in a different life she could have been a model or maybe a movie star, but her confident smirk reminded him just how far off she was.

“Your security could definitely use a few updates.” She said and then handed him a box.

Kaidan opened it up and saw a black suit and gold mask, one that very much resembled Shepard’s. “I’m assuming you expect me to wear this?” He raised an eyebrow at her.

Zehara mimicked his expression. “I’m assuming you want your information?”

He rolled his eyes and went into the bedroom to change. After pulling on the suit he inspected himself in the mirror. Kaidan didn’t want to know how she had figured out his measurements, but he had to admit that he looked better than he had in, well, a long time. Rolling his shoulders back, he stepped outside to meet Shepard. 

“Ready to go?” He asked, as if she hadn’t shown up already looking like a goddess. He offered her his arm and she took it, sighing.

“Unfortunately.”


	2. Masquerade

Afterlife was much nicer than Purgatory, especially when it was filled to capacity with people looking their best, intent on impressing whatever criminal elements had decided to show up to the event. It was colorful and festive and exciting. Alenko was impressed by the variety of formalwear and wealth on display. 

As soon as they entered the club, Zehara guided him up the stairs toward an asari wearing a magnificent gown of silver. As interested as he was in ascertaining her identity, he was more focused on the guards surrounding the area. They were the only partygoers armed and unmasked. 

“Commander Kaidan Alenko,” Zehara spoke to the asari, gesturing to him, “meet Aria T’Loak. Aria, meet the N7.”

He stuck out his hand and she shook it apathetically. It was clear that Aria was more focused on the woman by his side rather than on himself. He understood her lack of curiosity. Alliance soldiers were known quantities, but he had the feeling that Zehara was always plotting and planning, and he had no idea what she was thinking. “Welcome to Omega, Commander.”

He smiled lightly. “Do you lead Omega?”

Shepard laughed and Aria smiled. “No, Alenko, she  _ is _ Omega.”

With that, he and Zehara took their leave of the enigmatic asari and headed to the dancefloor. Classical music swelled around them and Kaidan took Zehara’s hand and pressed it to his lips. The Commander might’ve been out of his depth on Omega, but he knew how to impress. “Might I have a dance, Miss Shepard?”

She pretended to think hard about the question and Kaidan sighed. This woman made nothing easy. He swept her into his arms and began to lead. To his surprise, however, she didn’t need it. Shepard knew the steps possibly better than he did. She gracefully set the tempo and he found himself enjoying her company. 

“Where did you learn to dance?” He asked, the proximity granted by their dance allowing him to speak in a whisper.

She tilted her chin up to answer and her breath tickled his ear. “School dances on Arcturus. I used to hate them, but I find dancing to be useful,” she laughed as if letting him in on a secret, “now and then.”

“So, why this? Why the smuggling and the lies and the stealing?” He realized that what he said was probably construed as rude rather than curious so he added, “I looked at your file. You aren’t without talents.”

Shepard smiled, though not quite as warmly as before. “The boy scouts weren’t taking applications.”

“I’m not going to get a real answer, am I?” He sighed. She didn’t answer, just continued dancing. 

As he glanced around the room, he noticed that many of the people around the dancefloor were staring at them, or glancing furtively at Shepard while they danced by. Alenko understood why. She was utterly breathtaking, delicate and graceful in step and charming and alluring in personality. Her aura of confidence and command in combination with that dazzling red dress made it difficult to look away.

“I can’t believe Omega’s criminal elite agreed to be here unarmed. I can’t believe  _ you _ agreed to be here unarmed.” The back of Commander Alenko’s neck was prickling at the thought of being vulnerable.

“Oh, Commander,” her lips brushed the bottom of his ear and he shivered, “I’m never truly unarmed.”

“Biotics.” He relaxed a little at the thought. If it came down to it, both he and Shepard could protect themselves.

Shepard laughed. “Yes, that. I also have three daggers and a pistol hidden on my person at this very moment.”

“ _ Where _ ?” He asked, incredulously. There was no way she had that many weapons on her, not with that dress.

She simply winked in response as the music faded out. They headed toward a booth in the corner of the room. The two sat down and Shepard leaned forward, clasping her hands together and placing them on the table. He noticed people still glancing at them, but Shepard had picked a place that would prevent them from being overheard. 

“So,” her voice no longer contained the playful undertones it had earlier, “business.”

Kaidan straightened up and leaned forward. “I’m looking for a former Alliance Captain, Samuel Atticus.”

Shepard looked puzzled. “I know it’s none of my business, but why?”

He looked her over for a minute and weighed the benefits of telling her. Disclosing the information could build trust between them, but were she to warn the Captain he was coming, Kaidan would lose any chance he had at successfully completing this op. He thought for a moment more and began, “Samuel Atticus is suspected of selling Alliance secrets to Cerberus. If he did, an entire unit of undercover operatives are at risk.”

“Cerberus.” She nearly spat the words, but they were still whispering in their corner of Afterlife. “I know your man. The former Captain fancies himself an information broker.” She thought for a second and then resumed speaking. “I can set up a meeting, but not for you.”

Alenko started and gazed at her curiously. Before he could even ask the question, she answered. “By now, the entire station knows that you’re Alliance, and Atticus would smell a setup coming from a mile away.” Her eyes met his through her mask. “I’ll meet with him for you. I can arrange a deal and strike when he’s most vulnerable. Instead of bringing you to him, I’ll bring him to you.”

Kaidan had to admit, the plan was solid. Shepard, Omega installation that she was, would arouse no suspicion by meeting with an information broker. But it wasn’t the plan that bothered him. “What are your motives here, Shepard? I know you aren’t doing this out of the goodness of your heart.”

“Cerberus has taken many things from me. Suffice to say, I hate them.” She looked away from the glass of whiskey she had been absentmindedly swirling. “And once upon a time, Alliance soldiers saved my life. Think of this as repayment.” 

Shepard stood up and Kaidan followed her lead. He knew she’d send him the details in the same way she’d contacted him earlier. While he still didn’t quite understand, or trust, her motives, Commander Alenko was pretty close to figuring out how she operated. That is, he thought he was until suddenly she turned around and put an arm around his waist and kissed him.

She kissed him deeply, passionately. For a moment, he forgot where he was, why he was there, and even his own name. All he could think about was the beautiful woman he was kissing, arms gently wrapped around her waist with her fingers in his hair. With a breathy noise, she pulled away and Kaidan was brought back to reality. 

Shepard smiled and cocked her head to the side. “Walk me out?”

He was still speechless so all he could do was nod and offer her his arm. She took it and smiled again. It was only as they walked out of Afterlife that he noticed most of the partygoers were staring after them. If anything, this woman sure knew how to make a scene. 

The doors had barely closed behind them when he began, “What-”

She held up a hand. “We were being cased.” They continued their walk down the street. “And someone was trying their damn best to listen in on our conversation.” She sighed. “I had to make it look like we were just enjoying the night, and the liquor,” she stopped and let her eyes run the length of his body, which Kaidan surprisingly didn’t mind, “and each other.”

“You didn’t tell me because...?”

This time her smile was wicked. “Not enough time.”

Kaidan shook his head and kept walking her back to her apartment. This assignment in Omega was going to be interesting, assuming his heart would survive it. 


	3. A Revelation

Zehara Shepard’s apartment was ritzy, the kind of apartment rich business people owned on the Citadel or Illium. It appeared that being Omega’s top information broker came with perks. 

Alenko watched as she poured them both a glass of bourbon. When she had offered that he come in to discuss strategy, he accepted the invitation without hesitation. He wanted a chance to review the plan on his own, and, besides, he was curious about Shepard. Everything from her personality to her motives to her business practices was shrouded in a layer of mystery and an intangible sense of purpose. 

Shepard gestured to a comfortable looking couch and they made their way to it as he accepted the glass in her outstretched hand. They settled in and she began to speak. “When Atticus agrees to meet with me, he’s going to pick a place that’s advantageous to him. It’ll most likely be a back-alley surrounded by buildings that make good hiding places for guards and snipers. It’s what I would do.”

He thought for a moment. “So how do we get to him?”

“He’s not stupid enough to come alone.” She snorted and pulled up a hologram of one of Omega’s many back alleys. “But he might be stupid enough to think I am.” She pointed to the rooftops of two adjoining buildings. “He would have snipers hiding here and here, and guards in these smaller, diverging alleys. If I have my men arrive five to ten minutes after I do, they can eliminate those threats and we still maintain the element of surprise.”

Alenko nodded with approval. “Turn his strengths into weaknesses. But what makes you think he won’t arrange a meeting somewhere more public?”

“He recently pissed off the Blue Suns. He’s hiding.”

“So with your men surrounding him, I can arrest and interrogate Atticus. No lives lost?” Kaidan went over the strategy one more time, picturing it in his mind. 

Shepard leaned back. “We try to avoid killing, if at all possible. Worst case? His men wake up with a raging headache and a few bruises, nothing more.”

He looked at her appreciatively. The rumors, it seemed, were true. She closed the holo and poured them another drink. He drank it gratefully. 

“So,” he said, trying to think of a different subject, “you’re a biotic. L3 implants, I’m guessing?”

“L4, actually.” Zehara sighed and put her drink aside. “I ended up in a small colony in the Traverse before I could be trained and implanted. Didn’t get the device until later.”

He wanted to ask, but something about the look on her face stopped him. That was fine. It wasn’t like he was offering up information about his training either. 

“Why send an N7 for this? No offense, Commander.”

He wasn’t surprised by her question. He had wondered the same thing. “The Captain is dangerous. I suppose they wanted it done right.”

Shepard seemed satisfied with this answer. She nodded. “Figures Anderson would send someone he trusts.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Anderson?”

He could tell his question rattled her. She paused to pick up and finish her drink and then smiled. “It’s my job to be informed isn’t it?”

Alenko wasn’t satisfied with her answer, but he couldn’t press her, not when she held the fate of the op in her hands. He realized she was still looking at him so he nodded and poured them both another drink. She accepted it gratefully.

Shepard laughed for a second and held out her drink. “To our mutual friend, Captain Samuel Atticus. May he never see us coming.”

“I’ll drink to that.” He touched his glass to hers, drank, and then stood. “Do you have a bathroom?”

She nodded and pointed toward a hallway next to the kitchen. “Down the hall and to the left.”

As Alenko made his way to the bathroom he noticed a persistent feeling of warmth spreading through his face and to his fingers. He was pleasantly drunk, not tripping over himself, but pleasantly drunk. All the same, he decided to stop accepting glasses of bourbon. 

When he finally made it down the hall, he made a right turn and opened the door. The nicely made bed and wall of windows overlooking the center of Omega’s nightlife were immediate clues that he had made a mistake. He was about to leave what he assumed was Shepard’ bedroom when a blinking screen on the wall to his right caught his attention. An email from the turian Hierarchy, thanking “Mercury” for a timely shipment of weapons was displayed prominently on the screen. As he glanced over it he noticed something shiny hanging over the screen. The object that had distracted him from his previous goal was a set of dog tags. Feeling bad for snooping, but also extremely curious, Kaidan read the name on the tags.

_ Zehara Maria Shepard _ .


	4. History

When he walked back into the room, Zehara was lying on the couch with her arm thrown over her eyes. She sat up at the sound of his footsteps and gave him a curious look when he dropped the dog tags into her lap. She looked them over and laughed. 

“So that’s how you know Anderson?” He asked a question, but it sounded more like a statement. 

She ran her fingers absentmindedly over the tags and sighed. “Have you ever heard of Akuze?”

He was thrown by the question and thought about his experience in Alliance training. “Just rumors. We heard it was a slaughter, but the files are heavily classified. No one actually knows what went down.”

She drank straight out of the bottle before beginning. “It was supposed to be a standard op. We lost contact with our pioneer team and were sent to investigate.” Shepard looked lightyears away. “When we got there, the entire colony was gone.”

“Just vanished?” Kaidan didn’t want to interrupt her story, but he couldn’t understand how a colony just disappeared. 

She nodded. “Roanoke style. It was the strangest thing. The settlement was completely intact, there weren’t any signs of conflict, but there also wasn’t a single survivor. We got in late, around 2200 hours. Corporal Toombs ordered us to set up camp and investigate more in the morning.” 

Something about Shepard’s face made him want to stop her from re-living whatever she was about to tell him, but he couldn’t. Instead, he made sure his voice was as gentle as possible, and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Something happened didn’t it.”

“Three thresher maws. At first, we didn’t know what was happening. Nothing in our Alliance training prepared us for fighting three massive maws. Marines went down left and right, and as soon as we did any damage to a maw, it would bury underground and pop up behind us. It was a slaughter. Fifty marines lost their lives that day. I was the only one who made it to the evac zone.”

There was silence as he considered what to say. ‘I’m sorry’ felt too insincere and ‘Holy shit’ felt inappropriate. “That’s terrible.” He wanted to hit himself.

“That’s not even the worse part.” She shook her head. “When I came back, after the debrief, it was all quiet. I did some investigating and you know what else was on that planet? A Cerberus research station. My informants told me they wanted to observe the maws.”

Kaidan took another drink and sat back. “They were behind it?”

“The colony.... everything. When I brought my findings to Alliance brass, they dismissed them. All the sudden no one wanted to talk to me. Anderson tried.” She smiled softly when she spoke his name. “But I was done with the Alliance after that.” 

Alenko processed the information. Her words from earlier in the night about hating Cerberus and owing the Alliance suddenly made sense. If members of the brass were involved in the cover-up, it made sense that they would make sure those files were heavily classified. The rest of the information on Zehara’s monitors made sense too. “You know, I did some research on you.”

She raised a tired eyebrow. “As one would.”

“Want to know what I found?” 

“Enlighten me.”

He leaned forward. Whether his bravery was due to the copious amounts of alcohol he had consumed or the information he had learned, no one could say. “You sell weapons, sure, but strictly to the Hierarchy, Thessian commandos, and salarian STG. The information you trade to the Alliance and C-Sec has saved countless lives. You steal from pirates in the Traverse and give people on Omega a chance to make a living.” He looked at her and realized she was smirking at him. 

“Now you’re just listing off my crimes?” 

He rolled his eyes. “It’s illegal, but you have a reason.” He thought about her history on Akuze. “You’re making a difference in the way you can. The other methods failed you.”

She laughed, and he was glad he had seemingly cheered him up. “You a shrink now?”

He laughed, but he was cut short by the feeling of her lips on his. It was brief, but Kaidan wondered if she could hear how fast his heart was beating. 

“It’s good, sometimes, to be reminded that there’s good people in this galaxy.”

He wondered if she realized how on base she was. 

They were both distracted by the blinking of the datapad on the coffee table. An new email had come in and Shepard opened it before smiling deviously. “He bought it. We’re in business.”

“Good. I should get going. It’s getting late.” He glanced at his watch. 

“Stay here. I can sleep on the couch.” He was in the middle of protesting when she sighed and rolled her eyes. “You know what? We’re adults. We can share a bed.”

Alenko was surprised by her statement but he followed her into the bedroom anyway. She handed him a pair of pajamas, muttering something about them fitting, and slipped into an Alliance hoodie and shorts. They both got into bed and it was a few minutes before he noticed that they were both staring at the ceiling. 

“Cerberus will get what they deserve, Shepard.”

He didn’t really know why he said it, but he couldn’t get her story out of his head. He could relate to her feeling that the system failed when it should have worked. And while he still had his doubts, he trusted her. 

Alenko fell asleep with the warm feeling of her hand in his. 


End file.
